This study investigates changes in neurobiological characteristics after a cognitive skills program for prisoners. It was hypothesized that prisoners who completed a cognitive skills training program would show improved neurocognitive functioning and changes in heart rate (HR) activity. In addition, it was expected that neurobiological changes were related to behavioral improvement. Male adult prisoners were included in the study and divided into two groups: the “intervention group”—prisoners participating in a cognitive skills training program—and the “control group”—prisoners placed on a waitlist. Several neurocognitive skills and HR activity measures were assessed at pre- and posttest assessment. In addition, trainers, prison officers, and prisoners were requested to evaluate behavioral changes over time. Results did not confirm the hypotheses. The absence of both neurobiological and behavioral improvement is discussed in light of the measures used, the content and duration of the current intervention program, and the prison setting.
AndrewsD. A.DowdenC. (2007). The risk-need-responsivity model of assessment and human service in prevention and corrections: Crime-prevention jurisprudence. Canadian Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice, 49, 439-464. doi:10.3138/cjccj.49.4.439
2.
ArmstrongT. A.KellerS.FranklinT. W.MacMillanS. N. (2009). Low resting heart rate and antisocial behavior: A brief review of evidence and preliminary results from a new test. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 36, 1125-1140. doi:10.1177/0093854809342855
3.
Bakermans-KranenburgM. J.Van IjzendoornM. H.MesmanJ.AlinkL. R. A.JufferF. (2008). Effects of an attachment-based intervention on daily cortisol moderated by dopamine receptor D4: A randomized control trial on 1-to 3-year-olds screened for externalizing behavior. Development and Psychopathology, 20, 805-820. doi:10.1017/S0954579408000382
4.
BeauchaineT. P.NeuhausE.BrennerS. L.Gatzke-KoppL. (2008). Ten good reasons to consider biological processes in prevention and intervention research. Development and Psychopathology, 20, 745-774. doi:10.1017/S0954579408000369
5.
BeauregardM. (2014). Functional neuroimaging studies of the effects of psychotherapy. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 16, 75-81.
6.
BeckJ. S. (1995). Cognitive therapy: Basics and beyond. New York, NY: Guilford Press.
7.
BerntsonG. G.CacioppoJ. T.QuigleyK. S. (1991). Autonomic determinism–The modes of autonomic control, the doctrine of autonomic space, and the laws of autonomic constraint. Psychological Review, 98(4), 459-487. doi:10.1037/0033-295x.98.4.459
8.
BiringerE.RongveA.LundA. (2009). A review of modern antidepressants’ effects on neurocognitive function. Current Psychiatry Reports, 5, 1-11.
9.
BrickenkampR. (2007). D2 aandachts- en concentratietest handleiding [D2 test of attention manual]. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: Hogrefe Uitgevers.
10.
BrowerM. C.PriceB. H. (2001). Neuropsychiatry of frontal lobe dysfunction in violent and criminal behaviour: A critical review. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, & Psychiatry, 71, 720-726. doi:10.1136/jnnp.71.6.720
11.
BruceJ.McDermottJ. M.FisherP. A.FoxN. A. (2009). Using behavioral and electrophysiological measures to assess the effects of a preventive intervention: A preliminary study with preschool-aged foster children. Prevention Science, 10, 129-140. doi:10.1007/s11121-008-0115-8
12.
BuysseW.LoefL. (2012). Effectiveness of the cognitive skills treatment (CoVa) for offenders. Amsterdam, The Netherlands: DSP-groep.
13.
CashinA.PotterE.ButlerT. (2008). The relationship between exercise and hopelessness in prison. Journal of Psychiatric Mental Health Nursing, 15, 66-71.
ChanR. C. K.ShumD.ToulopoulouT.ChenE. Y. H. (2008). Assessment of executive functions: Review of instruments and identification of critical issues. Archives of Clinical Neuropsychology, 23, 201-216. doi:10.1016/j.acn.2007.08.010
16.
ClarkD. A. (2000). Theory manual for enhanced thinking skills (Prepared for Joint Accreditation Panel). London, England: Home Office.
17.
CohenJ. (1988). Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences (2nd ed.). Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.
18.
CornetL. J. M.De KogelC. H.NijmanH. L. I.RaineA.Van der LaanP. H. (2014). Neurobiological factors as predictors of cognitive-behavioral therapy outcome in individuals with antisocial behavior: A review of the literature. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 58, 1279-1296. doi:10.1177/0306624x13494694
19.
CornetL. J. M.De KogelC. H.NijmanH. L. I.RaineA.Van der LaanP. H. (2015). Neurobiological changes after intervention in individuals with antisocial behavior: A literature review. Criminal Behaviour and Mental Health, 25, 10-27. doi:10.1002/cbm.1915
20.
CornetL. J. M.Van der LaanP. H.NijmanH. L. I.TollenaarN.De KogelC. H. (2015). Neurobiological factors as predictors of prisoners’ response to a cognitive skills training. Journal of Criminal Justice, 43, 122-132. doi:10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2015.02.003
21.
DavidsonK. (2007). Cognitive therapy for personality disorder: A guide for clinicians. Hove, UK: Routledge.
22.
de GeusE. J. C.WillemsenG. H. M.KlaverC. H.Van DoornenL. J. P. (1995). Ambulatory measurement of respiratory sinus arrhythmia and respiration rate. Biological Psychology, 31, 205-227.
23.
DowdenC.SerinR. (2001). Anger management programme for offenders: The impact of program performance measures. Ottawa, Ontario: Research Branch Correctional Service of Canada.
24.
FazelS.DaneshJ. (2002). Serious mental disorder in 23 000 prisoners: A systematic review of 62 surveys. The Lancet, 359, 545-550. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(02)07740-1
25.
FerwerdaH.van WijkA.ArtsN.KuppensJ. (2009). CoVa volgens plan? Een vooronderzoek naar de mogelijkheden en reikwijdte van een effectonderzoek van de cognitieve vaardigheidstraining [CoVa according to plan? A preliminary effect study on the possibilities and scope of the cognitive skills training program]. Den Haag, The Netherlands: Scientific Research and Documentation Centre.
26.
FishbeinD.SheppardM. (2006). Assessing the role of neuropsychological functioning in inmates’ treatment response. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Justice. Retrieved from https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/216303.pdf
27.
FishbeinD.SheppardM.HydeC.HubalR.NewlinD.SerinR.. . . AlesciS. (2009). Deficits in behavioral inhibition predict treatment engagement in prison inmates. Law and Human Behavior, 33, 419-435. doi:10.1007/s10979-008-9163-7
28.
FriendshipC.BludL.EriksonM.TraversR.ThorntonD. (2003). Cognitive-behavioural treatment for imprisoned offenders: An evaluation of HM prison service’s cognitive skills programmes. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 8, 103-114. doi:10.1348/135532503762871273
29.
GieddJ. N.BlumenthalJ.JeffriesN. O.CastellanosF. X.LiuH.ZijdenbosA.. . . RapoportJ. L. (1999). Brain development during childhood and adolescence: A longitudinal MRI study. Nature Neuroscience, 2, 861-863. doi:10.1038/13158
30.
GlennA. L.RaineA. (2014). Neurocriminology: Implications for the punishment, prediction and prevention of criminal behaviour. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 15, 54-63. doi:10.1038/Nrn3640
31.
GobbettM. J.SellenJ. L. (2014). An evaluation of the HM prison service “Thinking Skills Programme” using psychometric assessments. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 58, 454-473. doi:10.1177/0306624x12472485
32.
HenryJ. D.CrawfordJ. R. (2004). Verbal fluency deficits in Parkinson’s disease: A meta-analysis. Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society, 10, 608-622. doi:10.1017/S1355617704104141
33.
HenryJ. D.CrawfordJ. R.PhillipsL. H. (2004). Verbal fluency performance in dementia of the Alzheimer’s type: A meta-analysis. Neuropsychologia, 42, 1212-1222. doi:10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2004.02.001
34.
HowardP.ClarkD.GarnhamN. (2003). Evaluation and validation of the Offender Assessment System (OASys). London, England: OASys Central Research Unit.
JohncoC.WuthrichV. M.RapeeR. M. (2014). The influence of cognitive flexibility on treatment outcome and cognitive restructuring skill acquisition during cognitive behavioural treatment for anxiety and depression in older adults: Results of a pilot study. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 57, 55-64. doi:10.1016/j.brat.2014.04.005
37.
JohnsonS. B.BlumR. W.GieddJ. N. (2009). Adolescent maturity and the brain: The promise and pitfalls of neuroscience research in adolescent health policy. Journal of Adolescent Health, 45, 216-221. doi:10.1016/j.jadohealth.2009.05.016
38.
KandelE. R. (1998). A new intellectual framework for psychiatry. American Journal of Psychiatry, 155, 457-469.
39.
KarlssonH. (2011). How psychotherapy changes the brain: Understanding the mechanisms. Psychiatric Times, 28(8), 1-5.
40.
KobesM. H. B. M.NijmanH. H. L. I.BultenE. B. H. (2012). Assessing aggressive behavior in forensic psychiatric patients: Validity and clinical utility of combining two instruments. Archives of Psychiatric Nursing, 26, 487-494. doi:10.1016/j.apnu.2012.04.004
41.
KoenigsM. (2012). The role of prefrontal cortex in psychopathy. Reviews in the Neurosciences, 23, 253-262. doi:10.1515/revneuro-2012-0036
42.
LandenbergerN. A.LipseyM. W. (2005). The positive effects of cognitive–behavioral programs for offenders: A meta-analysis of factors associated with effective treatment. Journal of Experimental Criminology, 1, 451-476.
43.
LewisM. D.GranicI.LammC.ZelazoP. D.StiebenJ.ToddR. M.. . . PeplerD. (2008). Changes in the neural bases of emotion regulation associated with clinical improvement in children with behavior problems. Development and Psychopathology, 20, 913-939. doi:10.1017/S0954579408000448
44.
LezakM. D.HowiesonD. B.BiglerE. D.TranelD. (2012). Neuropsychological assessment (5th ed.). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
45.
LiK. H.MengX. L.RaghunathanT. E.RubinD. B. (1991). Significance levels from repeated p-values with multiply-imputed data. Statistica Sinica, 1, 65-92.
46.
LindenD. E. J. (2006). How psychotherapy changes the brain: The contribution of functional neuroimaging. Molecular Psychiatry, 11, 528-538. doi:10.1038/sj.mp.4001816
47.
LipseyM. W.CullenF. T. (2007). The effectiveness of correctional rehabilitation: A review of systematic reviews. Annual Review of Law and Social Science, 3, 297-320. doi:10.1146/annurev.lawsocsci.3.081806.112833
48.
LipseyM. W.LandenbergerN. A.WilsonS. J. (2007). Effects of cognitive-behavioral programs for criminal offenders. Campbell Systematic Reviews, 6, 1-27. doi:10.4073/csr.2007.6
49.
LorberM. F. (2004). Psychophysiology of aggression, psychopathy, and conduct problems: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 130, 531-552. doi:10.1037/0033-2909.130.4.531
50.
MarshallA.AltmanD. G.HolderR. L. (2010). Comparison of imputation methods for handling missing covariate data when fitting a Cox proportional hazards model: A resampling study. BMC Medical Research Methodology, 10. doi:10.1186/1471-2288-10-112
51.
McDougallC.PerryA. E.ClarbourJ.BowlesR.WorthyG. (2009). Evaluation of HM prison service enhanced Thinking Skills Programme. London, England: Ministry of Justice.
52.
MeijersJ.HarteJ. M.JonkerF. A.MeynenG. (2015). Prison brain? Executive dysfunction in prisoners. Frontiers in Psychology, 6, Article 43. doi:10.3389/Fpsyg.2015.00043
53.
MelendezR. I.GregoryM. L.BardoM. T.KalivasP. W. (2004). Impoverished rearing environment alters metabotrophic glutamate receptor expression and function in the prefrontal cortex. Neuropsychopharmacology, 29, 1980-1987. doi:10.1038/sj.npp.1300507
54.
MendesF. D. C. D.de AlmeidaM. N. F.FelicioA. P. G.FadelA. C.SilvaD. D.BorralhoT. G.. . . SosthenesM. C. K. (2013). Enriched environment and masticatory activity rehabilitation recover spatial memory decline in aged mice. BMC Neuroscience, 14. doi:10.1186/1471-2202-14-63
55.
MorganA. B.LilienfeldS. O. (2000). A meta-analytic review of the relation between antisocial behavior and neuropsychological measures of executive function. Clinical Psychology Review, 20, 113-136. doi:10.1016/S0272-7358(98)00096-8
56.
MullinS.SimpsonJ. (2007). Does executive functioning predict improvement in offenders’ behaviour following enhanced thinking skills training? An exploratory study with implications for rehabilitation. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 12, 117-131. doi:10.1348/13553250591560
57.
NelsonH. E. (1982). National adult reading test manual. London, England: National Hospital London.
58.
NelsonH. E.O’ConnellA. (1978). Dementia: Estimation of premorbid intelligence levels using the new adult reading test. Cortex, 14, 234-244.
59.
OgilvieJ. M.StewartA. L.ChanR. C. K.ShumD. H. K. (2011). Neuropsychological measures of executive function and antisocial behavior: A meta-analysis. Criminology, 49, 1063-1107. doi:10.1111/j.1745-9125.2011.00252.x
60.
OrtizJ.RaineA. (2004). Heart rate level and antisocial behavior in children and adolescents: A meta-analysis. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 43, 154-162. doi:10.1097/01.chi.0000101373.03068.5c
61.
PortnoyJ.FarringtonD. P. (2015). Resting heart rate and antisocial behavior: An updated systematic review and meta-analysis. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 22, 33-45. doi:10.1016/j.avb.2015.02.004
62.
PortnoyJ.RaineA.ChenF. R.PardiniD.LoeberR.JenningsJ. R. (2014). Heart rate and antisocial behavior: The mediating role of impulsive sensation seeking. Criminology, 52, 292-311. doi:10.1111/1745-9125.12038
63.
PortoP. R.OliveiraL.MariJ.VolchanE.FigueiraI.VenturaP. (2009). Does cognitive behavioral therapy change the brain? A systematic review of neuroimaging in anxiety disorders. The Journal of Neuropsychiatry & Clinical Neurosciences, 21, 114-125.
64.
RaineA. (2002). Annotation: The role of prefrontal deficits, low autonomic arousal, and early health factors in the development of antisocial and aggressive behavior in children. The Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, and Allied Disciplines, 43, 417-434.
65.
RaineA. (2008). From genes to brain to antisocial behavior. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 17, 323-328. doi:10.1111/j.1467-8721.2008.00599.x
ReiterJ. P. (2007). Small-sample degrees of freedom for multi-component significance tests with multiple imputation for missing data. Biometrika, 94, 502-508. doi:10.1093/biomet/asm028
RomD. M. (2013). An improved Hochberg procedure for multiple tests of significance. British Journal of Mathematical and Statistical Psychology, 66, 189-196. doi:10.1111/j.2044-8317.2012.02042.x
70.
RossE. H. (2012). Are offence-focused correctional rehabilitation programs affecting inmates’ executive cognitive functions? (Doctoral thesis). Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario, London, Canada.
71.
RossE. H.HoakenP. N. S. (2010). Correctional remediation meets neuropsychological rehabilitation: How brain injury and schizophrenia research can improve offender programming. Criminal Justice and Behavior, 37, 656-677. doi:10.1177/0093854810363104
72.
RossR. R.HilbornJ. (2008). Rehabilitating rehabilitation: Neurocriminology for treatment of antisocial behavior. Ottawa, Ontario: Cognitive Centre of Canada.
73.
RossbergJ. I.FriisS. (2003). Staff members’ emotional reactions to aggressive and suicidal behavior of inpatients. Psychiatric Services, 54, 1388-1394. doi:10.1176/appi.ps.54.10.1388
74.
RubinD. B. (1987). Multiple imputation for nonresponse in surveys. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley.
75.
SadlierG. (2010). Evaluation of the impact of the HM prison service Enhanced Thinking Skills Programme on reoffending: Outcomes of the Surveying Prisoner Crime Reduction (SPCR) sample. London, England: Ministry of Justice.
76.
ScarpaA.HadenS. C.TanakaA. (2010). Being hot-tempered: Autonomic, emotional, and behavioral distinctions between childhood reactive and proactive aggression. Biological Psychology, 84, 488-496. doi:10.1016/j.biopsycho.2009.11.006
77.
SchmandB.LindeboomJ.van HarskampF. (1992). NLV nederlandse leestest voor volwassenen handleiding [NART national adult reading test manual]. Lisse, The Netherlands: Pearson Assessment and Information.
78.
ShaoZ.JanseE.VisserK.MeyerA. S. (2014). What do verbal fluency tasks measure? Predictors of verbal fluency performance in older adults. Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 1-10. doi:10.3389/Fpsyg.2014.00772
79.
SowellE. R.ThompsonP. M.TessnerK. D.TogaA. W. (2001). Mapping continued brain growth and gray matter density reduction in dorsal frontal cortex: Inverse relationships during postadolescent brain maturation. Journal of Neuroscience, 21, 8819-8829.
80.
van BuurenS. (2012). Flexible imputation of missing data. Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press.
81.
van BuurenS.BoshuizenH. C.KnookD. L. (1999). Multiple imputation of missing blood pressure covariates in survival analysis. Statistics in Medicine, 18, 681-694. doi:10.1002/(Sici)1097-0258(19990330)18:6<681::Aid-Sim71>3.0.Co;2-R
Van GoozenS. H. M.FairchildG. (2008). How can the study of biological processes help design new interventions for children with severe antisocial behavior?Development and Psychopathology, 20, 941-973. doi:10.1017/S095457940800045x
85.
VaskeJ.GalyeanK.CullenF. T. (2011). Toward a biosocial theory of offender rehabilitation: Why does cognitive-behavioral therapy work?Journal of Criminal Justice, 39, 90-102. doi:10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2010.12.006
86.
VinkeA.VogelvangB. O.ErftermeijerL.VeltkampE.BruggemanM. (2003). Recidive Inschattings Schalen. Concept handleiding gebruikersversie 1.0 [Recidivism Assessment Scale. Concept manual users version 1.0]. Woerden, The Netherlands: Adviesbureau van Montfoort.
87.
VolkersK. M.ScherderE. J. A. (2011). Impoverished environment, cognition, aging and dementia. Reviews in the Neurosciences, 22, 259-266. doi:10.1515/Rns.2011.026
88.
WahlundK.KristianssonM. (2009). Aggression, psychopathy and brain imaging - Review and future recommendations. International Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 32, 266-271. doi:10.1016/j.ijlp.2009.04.007
89.
WillemsenG. H. M.de GeusE. J. C.KlaverC. H. A. M.Van DoornenL. J. P.CarrollD. (1996). Ambulatory monitoring of the impedance cardiogram. Psychophysiology, 33, 184-193. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8986.1996.tb02122.x
90.
WistedtB.RasmussenA.PedersenL.MalmU.TraskmanbendzL.WakelinJ.BechP. (1990). The development of an observer-scale for measuring social dysfunction and aggression. Pharmacopsychiatry, 23, 249-252. doi:10.1055/s-2007-1014514
91.
WolteringS.GranicI.LammC.LewisM. D. (2011). Neural changes associated with treatment outcome in children with externalizing problems. Biological Psychiatry, 70, 873-879. doi:10.1016/j.biopsych.2011.05.029
92.
WoodallJ.DixeyR.SouthJ. (2014). Control and choice in English prisons: Developing health-promoting prisons. Health Promotion International, 29, 474-482. doi:10.1093/heapro/dat019
93.
World Health Organization. (2007). Health in prisons: A WHO guide to the essentials in prison health. Copenhagen, Denmark: WHO Regional Office for Europe.
94.
YangY. L.RaineA. (2009). Prefrontal structural and functional brain imaging findings in antisocial, violent, and psychopathic individuals: A meta-analysis. Psychiatry Research-Neuroimaging, 174, 81-88. doi:10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.03.012
95.
ZaalbergA.NijmanH.BultenE.StroosmaL.van der StaakC. (2010). Effects of nutritional supplements on aggression, rule-breaking, and psychopathology among young adult prisoners. Aggressive Behavior, 36, 117-126. doi:10.1002/Ab.20335
96.
ZaalbergA.WieldersJ.BultenE.van der StaakC.WoutersA.NijmanH. (2015). Relationships of diet related blood parameters and blood lead levels with psychopathology and aggression in forensic psychiatric inpatients. Criminal Behaviour and Mental Health. Advance online publication. doi:10.1002/cbm.1954
Supplementary Material
Please find the following supplemental material available below.
For Open Access articles published under a Creative Commons License, all supplemental material carries the same license as the article it is associated with.
For non-Open Access articles published, all supplemental material carries a non-exclusive license, and permission requests for re-use of supplemental material or any part of supplemental material shall be sent directly to the copyright owner as specified in the copyright notice associated with the article.
